Congratulations to Juliet Gevargis-Mizimakoski on a compelling final defense of her dissertation: HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF THEIR MULTI-TIERED SYSTEM OF SUPPORTS (MTSS) TIER 1 PREPARATION AND CLASSROOM PRACTICES: A QUALITATIVE STUDY.  Juliet’s research illuminated high school teachers’ views about the benefits and challenges of implementing Tier 1 MTSS in secondary schools.  Her findings underscored how important it is for MTSS team processes to be efficient and relatable in ways that build teacher trust and buy-in. Juliet also identified an absence of MTSS-related professional development opportunities for high school teachers; instead, teachers tend to rely on their own prior experience and collegial sharing for guidance.  Juliet’s insightful conclusions and recommendations aim to position MTSS on school leaders’ radar as a worthy approach to systemically addressing the needs of all students.

Moments after her defense, Juliet was exploring means to publish her findings and advance her recommendations.  Keep an eye out for this newly-minted MTSS expert’s next steps: she has much to offer!

Dissertation Chair:
Dr. Joanne Marien 

Dissertation Committee Members:
Dr. Kenneth Mitchell
Dr. Martin Brooks